Plate hangers



Mrch 11, 1958 J. c. BRwN PLATE HANGERS s sheets-sheet 1 original Filed oct. 3. `1951 INVENTOR John Clark Brown ATTORNEY March 11,1958 J. c. BowN 2,826,384

' PLATE HANGERS f Original Filed Oct; 5, 1951 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Fig. 6;

ATTORNEY John C .Igrk Brown M arch 1l, 1958 origina'l Filed oct. K3. 1951 Fig. 7.'

Fig. v9.

3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Fig.

5 ql\, /2l7 INVENTOR John4 Clerk Brown BY www ATTORNEY United States Patent 2,826,384 Patented Mar.` l1, 1958 PLATE HANGERS .lohn Clark Brown, Upper Montclair, N. J.

Continuation of abandoned application Serial No. 249,526, ctober 5, 1951. This appiication May Ztl, 1954, Sei-iai No. 431,248

4 Claims. (Cl. 248-30) This invention relates to plate-hanging devices briefly called pl-ate hangers, attachable to a decorative plate or the like and whereby such plates can be hung picturelike as from a nail or hook in a wall.

A device of the general character herein contemplated comprises hook-bearing plate-gripping elements in the nature of formed wire elements for marginally engaging the plate, in combination with tie means or spring means for drawing the hook elements together at the back of the plate, as well as some means for hanging this assembly. A device of the kind and construction herein more particularly contemplated consists of a combination of shaped wire parts for marginally gripping the plate with tie means or tension-exerting stretchable means for drawing them together.

From the viewpoint of this invention some requirements for such a device are (a) that it be capable of safely gripping plates so as to be reliably self-sustained thereon, so that the assembly of plate and hanger becomes unitary and can be conveniently handled and hung; (b) that itbe adaptable to various diameter plates; (c) that it be structurally simple while comprising a minimum number of parts that are simple and inexpensive to manufacture with simple and inexpensive tooling; (d) that it be non-bulky when attached to the plate; (e) that it be compact and flat to package as upon a display card; (f) and importantly that it be stable and non-wobbling when hung against the wall even though with a suitable forward inclination away from the wall.

It is an object of this invention to provide an improved plate hanger which in itself meets not only one or several, but practically all of these requirements, and further improves known devices with respect to any one or more of these requirements, especially as to minimizing. the number of parts and simplifying them as to wire forming operation even though rendering them more practical, rendering the device adaptable to a relatively larger range of plate sizes, rendering the device adapted for compact packaging, and rendering it readily adjustable as to inclination and rendering it stable as to hung position.

In view of these objects and requirements the invention may be said to be more particularly concerned with a plate hanger comprising a pair of devices of formedwire, viz., twin hook members gripping the top edge and the bottom edge portions respectively of the plate, both twin hook members being drawn together by tie means or spring power.` Such a twin hook member presents itself substantially as a body portion of U-shape that is wider than long, the two ends of which shape are formed each with an edge-gripping hook portion. Thus with an upright U-shaped device gripping the top edge, and an inverted U-shaped device gripping the bottom edge portion, the plate is held at four gripping points,

.namely,'two at the top and two at the bottom edge of the plate. With a given shape and size, the problem is then `encountered when applying the device to the larger plate diameters where the spacing of the gripping points along the periphery becomes too unevenly distributed to be safe in so far as the points at thetop and at the bottom of the edge are then relatively close and too close together whereas the side edge portions are nongripped along a relatively long portion of the periphery. With such uneven gripping distribution along the periphery the plate is only nsecurely held by the device and might slip sideways from its grip. It is another object of this invention to provide improvements whereby that danger is eliminated.

The foregoing. objects are attained mainly by providing a plate hanger comprising a pair of plate-edge gripping wire devices each having a leg-bearing U-shaped wall-contractable body portion that is wider than long whose central section curves away from the legs with the legs merging curvedly into hook-bearing Shanks that extend laterally from the body portion providing between each leg and its shank a bend with one of the devices adapted for attachment by its hooks to the upper edge of the plate to be hung from a wall and the other of the devices adapted for oppositely-directed attachment to the lower edge of the plate, and a single tension-exerting linear element extending from one bend of one of the devices to the other bend of the same device, meanwhile passing around the other device whereby when the plate is hung by supporting the central curved section of the upper device from the wall the linear element lies substantially parallel to the wall to exert its tension parallelly on the devices while the entire widened body portions of both devices abut against thev wall thus giving spacedapart extended bases of support for the plate. Auxiliary lateral hook means or plate-gripping members can be operatively associated with the tie means for engaging and securing the side edge portions of the larger size plates. t Features of this invention lie in the pair of wide shape of the twin hook devices and in the new technical elfects flowing therefrom when in coaction with the tie element.

According to one feature, the generally U-shaped device is shaped for hanging the device, while also serving as a simple and convenient means of attachment for coil spring or tie element. For instance, the terminal eyes 0r ring-like spring terminals may be conveniently slipped over the free ends of the member or by another way of attachment the spring itself be lodged in the saddle shape formed where the leg of the U-shaped body portion merges curvedly into the hook-bearing shank. Furthermore, the saddle shape is changeable by bending the Shanks toward or away from the U-shaped portion for varying the angle of their intersection, thereby regulating the angle of inclination of the plate relative to the wall.

According to another feature the tie means is in the nature of a wire, for example, a wire element upon which are strung auxiliary single hook members for laterally securing the plate when' the wire is tensioned with the device thus self-sustained upon the plate.

According to another feature an endless tensioned tie element engages the gripping members by way of lodging in the saddle shapes thereof.

According to one embodiment a single coil spring has its ends anchored upon respective ends of the one gripping member, while the intermediate portion of the spring lodges in the saddle of the other gripping member.

According to another embodiment the pair of reversely directed U-shaped devices, as well as a pair of auxiliary hooks are held together by a length of multi-strand picture wire the ends of which are fastened to respective saddle portions of one of the twin hook lJ-shaped bodies.

According to still another embodiment the pair of U- shaped devices, as well as a pair of auxiliary hooks are held together centripetally by an endless member of elastic material.

As this invention may be embodied in other forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof, the present embodiment is therefore illustrative and not restrictive, since the scope of the invention is defined bythe appended claims and all changes that fall within the metes and bounds of the claims, or of equivalents of such metes and bounds, are therefore intended to be embraced by these claims,

' Inthe'ydr'awings:

i VFigure l shows the two-pronged gripping device in one embodiment of the plate hanger in which an upper and a lower such member are held together by tie means in the form of a single coil spring.

,Fig 2:,shows Aan embodiment similar to that of Fig. l, although the tie. means employed are in the form of a vire, with the addition of a pair of auxiliary edge-gripping hook members strung on the wire.

Fig 3 is an enlarged side view of a plate with the plate hangerattachedy thereto, including a pair of oppositely directed leg-bearing U-shaped wall-contactable plate-gripping devices, and the assembly hung from a hook in a wall.`

Fig. 4v is a' front viewof the upper wall-contactable plate-grippingvdevice taken on the line 4-4 in Fig. 3.

Fig.- 5"is1a topvv'iew of the plate-gripping device taken on line 5 5 in Fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the plate-gripping device.

Fig. 7 is a plan view ofn a wire form representing an intermediate production shape of the plate-gripping dev1ce.

Fig. 8 is ,a side view taken on line 7-7 of Fig. 7.

Fig. 9 shows another embodiment of the plate hanger viewed as attached to the back of a plate, modilied with respect to the tie means for the wall-contactable plategripping devices, namely, an endless resiliently stretchable tie element.

Each of the embodiments of the plate hanger herein shown employs a pair of oppositely directed U-shaped devices having edge-gripping members consisting of a formed wire of special characteristic configuration. Since that special form has a direct bearing upon a novel manner in which the device is applied to and held upon a plate, and furthermore, since that form has produced an improved manner of wire forming, this hook-bearing device as detailed in Figs. 3, 4, 5, will now rst be described to furnish the basis for the description of various embodiments of the plate hanger as a Whole.

In fact, a step-by-step definition of this important device will be further helped by rst describing an intermediate production or wire forming stage thereof as shown in Figs. 6 and 7. This intermediate form designated by the'letter U is U-shaped comprising a transverse portion P1, andra pair of upright portions P2 and P3.

The transverse portion in turn comprises a central downwardly curved section P4 between horizontal end portions .P5 and P6 merging with the recessed portion by way of rounds r1 and r2. The upright portions P2 and P3 merge with respective outer ends of the horizontal portions P5 and P6 by way of rounds r3 and r4. portions P2 and P3, in turn, comprises a substantially vertical lower leg portion P7 that jointly with the transverse portion P1 forms the U-shaped main body portion (P1 plus P7 in Fig. 7, but shown as M in Fig. 6), that is wider than long. vThe legs P7 merge into an upper end portion P8 forming a hook-bearing shank and having a slight outward inclination indicated by the acute angle A as dened by that portion and the vertical. Each inclined shank portion Ps is longer than the legs P7 and merges with the vertical leg portion P7 by way of round 1'5 and upwardly terminates in a downwardly pointing hook O so bent as to lie in a plane other than the plane of the general U-shape of the main body portion of the wire form. The hook-bearing Shanks P8 are also longer than the overall length of the U-shaped body portion, namely, longer than the sum of P7 plus D (Fig. 7). Another way of saying this is that the hook-bearing shanks extend from the legs on one side of the U-shaped body portion to a point on the opposite side of the body portion that is beyond. they maximumpreach of any part thereof.

Each of the upright CIK Cil

The side View of this U-shaped wire device in Fig. 7 shows the totai height H thereof, the overhanging length L of the hook-shaped terminal portions, the depth D of the central curved portion. In dot-and-dash this also shows the length B of the lower portion of the U-shape to be bent upwardly, in fact, such upward bend completes the shape which constitutes the novel hook-bearing plategripping member designated by the letter M and represented in the perspective view in Fig. 6 thereof. (M in 6 comprises P1 plus P7 and P8 in Fig. 7.)

The shape of the nished Wire device of Fig. 6 presents a saddle shape between the leg-bearing U-shaped body portion, whose legs P7 merge into the saddle-shaped bends S1 and S2 adapted to receive and hold the tie means for example, in one of two ways, namely, by having a tie element extend transversely of the member While lodging in the saddle shape thereof, or by having the ends of such tie element attached or anchored upon respective bends S1 and S2.

There will now be described the embodiments of the plate hanger of Figs. l, 2, 3, 9, each of which is shown to employ a pair of the above described hook-bearing U- shaped body members or devices M, Fig. 6, namely such an upright member engaging the top edge of the plate and such an inverted member engaging the bottom edge of the plate, with tie means elective between them for holding them thus engaged.

The Fig. l embodiment of the plate hanger is shown and viewed as applied to the back of a plate 10 indicated in dot-and-dash. The device in that embodiment comprises a pair of oppositely directed wall-contactable hookbearing U-shaped edge-gripping members, namely, an upper upright leg-bearing U-shaped body member 11 Whose legs merge into shanks P1 and P2, terminating in hooks engagingthe upper peripheral portion of the plate, and a similar lower although inverted leg-bearing U- shaped member 12 whose Shanks terminate in hooks engaging the lower edge portion of the plate. Both U- shaped members 11 and 12 are held together and in place by a tension-inducing linear tie element such as in the form of a Vcoil spring 13, upon which are shown to be strung or stored for optional use a pair of auxiliary hook members 14 and 15 adapted to engage upon respective lateral edge portions of plate 10. A transverse intermediate portion 16 of the coil spring 113 extends across the upper U-shaped body member 11 and lodges in the saddle of that member, namely, in bends S1 and S2 thereof. Vertical end portions 17 and 18 of the spring having strung thereon the auxiliary hook members 14 and 15 are anchored upon the bends S1 and S2 of inverted U-shaped bodyv member l12, that is, the very ends of spring 13 'constitute eye-shaped terminals 19 and 20 formed for example, by the last few bent-off windings of the spring itself and slipped over respective Shanks P1 and P2 of the member from the Vfree ends thereof. The R curved central section (P4 in Fig. 7) of the U-shaped body member 11 engages upon a nail 23 in a Wall 24 when hanging the plate (see Fig. 3). When thus lhanging the plate as in Fig. 3, it is to be noted that the saddle-shaped angle A1 may beadjusted by accordingly bending the wire form. That is, the upper U-shaped body member 11 may be adjusted to form alarger Vangle A1, whereas the lower U-shaped body member 12 forms a significantly smaller angle A2. In this way the plate, when hung, may be given an adjustable degree of forward tilt'ndicated by the angle'V T.

The Fig. 2` embodiment ofthe plate hanger comprises a pair of oppositely directed, wall-contactable hook-bearing vU-shaped plate-gripping members 11a and 12a similar to those of Fig. 1.` However, instead of the single coil spring there is provided a tie element in the form of a length of 'wire such as multi-strand picture wire 25 the intermediate portion 26 of which extends across the U-shaped member 11a and lodges in the saddle-shaped bends B1 and B2 thereof, while the end portions 27 and 28 of the wire are fastened to respective bends B3 and B4 of the member. Auxiliary lateral hook members 21a and 22a are strung upony respective end portions 27 and 28 of the wire and are shown to be grippingly engaged upon respective lateral edge portions of the plate. Therefore, in this embodiment the tie element or wire presents approximately an incomplete hexagon shape surrounding circular edge E of the under side or back of the plate, with the sixth or bottom side of the hexagon shape open.

The Fig. 9 embodiment appears similar to that of Fig. 2, comprising a pair of oppositely directed U-shaped plate-gripping members 11b and 12b (similar to 11 and 12 in Fig. 1, and 11a and 1284 in Fig. `2), together with a pair of auxiliary edge-gripping hook members 21b and 22h, but with all members being drawn together by means of an endless resiliently stretchable tie element 29 cxtending across both the upper and the lower U-shaped members 11b and 12b and lodging in the respective saddleshaped bends B5, B6, B7 and BB thereof. The endless tie element presents a complete hexagon shape surrounding the edge E1 of the under side or back of the plate. The endless tie element of this embodiment may consist of suitable resiliently stretchable material, for example, a suitable kind of rubber or synthetic material or suitable other stretchable element such as nylon structure.

Fig. 3 of the drawings gives the best idea of some important advantages flowing from this invention. Hence there is shown a pair of the devices embodying this invention with the upper one being designated generally at 11 and the oppositely directed one being designated generally 12. These devices each have a leg-bearing Pq U- shaped M wall-abuttable body portion 11 or 12 that is wider than it is long whose central section P4 or R curves away from the legs Pq, but all lying in one plane with the legs merging curvedly into hook-bearing O Shanks `Pf, that are longer than the U-shaped body-portion and extend laterally from the body portion providing between each leg of the U and its shank a bend P1 and P2 with one of the devices adapted for attachment by its hooks to the upper edge of the plate to be hung from the Wall and the other of the devices adapted for oppositely-directed attachment to the lower edge of the plate, with a single tension-exerting linear tie element 13 or 25 extending from one bend of one of the devices to the other bend of the samerdevice meanwhile passing around the other device, whereby, when the plate is hung by supporting the central curved section of the upper device from the wall, the linear element lies parallel to the wall to` exert its tension parallely on the devices while the entire widened body portions of both devices abut against the wall thus giving spaced-apart extended bases of support for the plate. To say it another way, the upper and lower devices both contact the wall, each having a relatively broad base to go against the wall, and bridging these spaced-apart broad bases is the tension-exerting tie elementmeanwhile the plate is held iirmly by the hook-bearing Shanks laterally extending from the legs of the U-shaped wall-contacting devices. Auxiliary hooks 14 and 15, or 21a and 22a, or 2lb and 22h, may be strung on the tension-inducing linear tie element, for engagement with the side edges of larger plates, if desired, as shown in Figs. 2 and 9. If not used, these auxiliary hooks remain unused hid behind the plate, as shown in Fig. l.

As will be understood, a spring under tension is subject after a time, to fatigue, so the tension of the spring tends to reduce in its force. By using one relatively long spring, the fatigue is distributed over a relatively long length of spring, thereby reducing to a minimum the loss in tension. Still another feature of this spring tie element between the plate-gripping devices is that the same spring can be used regardless of the size of the plate to be held by Vthe devices, and if the spring length is too long as it may be in the case of hanging a saucer or small plate, the excess spring can be cut olf and the ends of the remaining spring readily made into ring-like terminals for securement to the plate-gripping devices. Again, if the longest length of Spring is desired to be used, such as for a very large plate, instead of the spring 1S being looped through the saddles S1 and S2 as shown in Fig. l, the upper part of the spring can be looped directly around the upwardly curved central portion R of the upper device 11. But in general, Fig. 3 is believed to stress the point of the use of two spaced-apart broad U-shaped devices contacting the wall at both top and bottom oi the plate to give non-wobbling or non-rocking support to the plate, yet these devices are held together tensionally by the tie element acting parallel to the wall, irrespective of thepsize of the plate so supported by the hanging devices. Yet, at the same time, the angle of tilt ot the plate from the wall 'can be readily adjusted by bending the hook-bearing shanks from the U-shaped device that abuts the wall. These devices are usable without change for hanging plates from 5" to 20 in diameter.

This application is a continuation of my parent patent application Serial No. 249,526, tiled October 3, 1951, now abandoned.

I claim:

1. A plate hanger comprising a pair of plate-edge gripping wire devices, each of the devices including a generally U-shaped body portion defining a pair of spaced legs interconnected by a transverse portion, the transverse portion being longer than the legs and being provided with a curved medial portion projecting oppositely of the legs and with said legs, transverse and medial portions lying in a common plane, each device also including hookbearing Shanks integral with said legs but disposed at an acute angle thereto with the Shanks of each device lying in a common plane, each of the Shanks terminating in a hook adapted to engage spaced edge portions of a plate, and a single tension-exerting linear element extending between the body portion and hook-bearing Shanks of one device and secured at opposite ends to the junctures of the shanks and legs of the other device whereby the linear element will lie substantially parallel to a wall with the entire widened body portions of both devices Vabutting the wall thus giving spaced-apart extended bases of support for the plate.

2. A plate hanger according to claim 1, wherein the `Shanks are longer than the legs of the U-shaped body portion and the hooks into which the shanks terminate lie in a plane other than that of the U-shaped body portion.

3. A plate hanger according to claim 1, wherein the shanks are longer than the length of the U-shaped body portion including its legs and curved central portion.

4. 'I'he plate hanger according to claim 1, wherein plate gripping members are carried by said linear element between said pair of wire devices, said plate gripping members terminating in hooks for engaging with the edge of an associated plate to deform and increase the tension exerted by said linear element.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 238,807 Phillips Mar. 15, 1881 261,740 Marucheau July 25, 1882 797,208 Lehman Aug. 15, 1905 1,010,633 Jacobson Dec. 5, 1911 2,068,662 Demorest Ian. 26, 1937 2,300,972 Robinson Nov. 3, 1942 2,315,268 Oliphant Mar. 30, 1943 2,488,243 Schneir Nov. 15, 1949 2,636,704 Norberg Apr. 28, 1953 FOREIGN PATENTS 260,531 Germany June 3, 1913 439,524 Italy Sept. 20, 1948V 473,080 Great Britain Oct. 6, 1937y 678,629 Great Britain Sept. 3, 1952 

